Even though the 24-race 2017 season doesn’t start for a month, the National Hot Rod Association is already thinking about the end of the season, revealing significant changes for the six-race Countdown to the Championship playoffs.

On Wednesday, the NHRA Competition Committee announced changes to qualifying and the amount of points that can be earned, particularly for the season-ending Auto Club Finals in Pomona.

Here’s how things break down:

* Drivers in Top Fuel, Funny Car, Pro Stock and Pro Stock Motorcycle that compete in the Auto Club Finals will race for increased points that could ultimately result in some surprising come-from-behind championship finishes.

First, the amount of points that can be earned by a single driver in the Finals will increase from 130 to 191 points. The winner of the Finals in each professional class will receive 150 points, runner-up will earn 120 points; semifinalists will earn 90 points apiece; second-round finishers will earn 60 points each; and first-round finishers will all claim 30 points.

Also, qualifying points will increase from 10 to 15 for the Finals.

Ultimately, the maximum of 191 points that can be earned will be based upon the 150 points earned for winning the race, 15 points for qualifying, and additional 10 points for earning overall No. 1 qualifying honors and a maximum total of 16 bonus points for the four quickest runs of each of the four qualifying sessions prior to the final day’s round of eliminations.

Qualifying bonus points at the Auto Club NHRA Finals are awarded after each qualifying session for the first-, second-, third- and fourth-quickest passes of each session:

1st — 4
2nd — 3
3rd — 2
4th — 1

* The start of the six-race Countdown will also see changes. The driver who is leading their respective class after the U.S. Nationals at Indianapolis will be crowned “regular season champion” and will receive a 20-point bonus over other Countdown contenders.

In other words, when points are reset for the Countdown, the regular season champ will start with 2,100 points, while No. 2 through No. 10 will start the playoffs with 10-point increments ranging from 2,080 (for No. 2) down to 2,000 points (for No. 10).

* Another change to the Countdown structure is “if a driver who qualified for the playoffs and is eligible for the championship does not qualify at a Countdown event in which two qualifying sessions were not completed, said driver will be guaranteed a qualifying position in the event’s final 16-car field.

“That driver will be inserted into the (16-driver elimination) ladder in the position of the non-championship eligible driver with the least amount of points entering the event.”

“We believe the changes for the 2017 season will increase the level of competition in all the NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series categories. The points-and-half up for grabs at the Auto Club NHRA Finals will bring a heightened level of excitement for the fans and the racers at the conclusion of the thrilling race season,” Graham Light, NHRA senior vice president of racing operations Vice President, said in a statement.

Pirelli World Challenge could use a “face” of the series from a driving standpoint, and American Michael Cooper is a good candidate to fill that role for 2018.

Cooper, 27, has won PWC Touring Car, GTS and, most recently the SprintX GT titles within the series and has quickly blossomed into one of the series’ top GT stars.

It’s been a rapid rise for the Syosset, N.Y. native, entering into a world filled with series stars and champions such as Johnny O’Connell, Patrick Long, Alvaro Parente and a host of others.

But under O’Connell’s tutelage, Cooper admirably filled the rather gaping shoes vacated by Andy Pilgrim at Cadillac Racing, steering the Cadillac ATS-V.R to multiple race wins in the last two years – including a sweep of this year’s season finale weekend at Sonoma.

Cooper and Jordan Taylor were the model of consistency in SprintX this year, winning once at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park and surviving contact at Circuit of The Americas to take that title.

The Callaway is a proven commodity in Europe but couldn’t run in the U.S. unless the path was cleared by one of GM’s factory programs to end a direct, potential head-to-head competition.

Moving from the Cadillac to the Callaway Corvette should be a natural transition, Cooper said last week.

“It worked out incredibly well that GM decided to allow Calloway to run the car in the United States and it created an opportunity for me that wouldn’t have been there otherwise,” he told NBC Sports. “I talked to a lot of other GT teams and at the end of the day, I felt like this was the best direction for me to be competitive next year and to also continue furthering my career with General Motors.”

Indeed Cooper has graduated from the Blackdog Speed Shop Chevrolet Camaro Z/28.R in GTS to the Cadillac and now to the Callaway Corvette. Cooper hailed the Cadillac team for what they did for his career growth.

“Working with Cadillac Racing has been instrumental in developing my abilities both on and off the track,” he said. “So I’m definitely a much more well-rounded driver now and have a lot of experience in the World Challenge GT field, so I kind of know what to expect going into that first race and going into that first corner in St. Pete.”

As noted, the car’s success in Europe means it’s a well-oiled machine by the time Reeves Callaway has worked with PWC to bring it Stateside next year. And as Cooper explained, discussions had been underway for a bit of time to ensure his presence in this car and team.

“I think the car is going to be extremely capable. It’s already won championships and races in Europe. I think, in bringing it over here, we’re going to hit the ground running straight away,” he said.

“Calloway had wanted me to come drive for them in July or August. We always kept in touch since then, and there was a lot of work trying to put together a program before they decided that they were going to do a fully fledged factory program. So once they made that decision, I think the pieces were kind of in place already, and the conversations had been had to be able to say ‘You’re going to be our guy.’”

December is late for IMSA programs to get finalized, but it’s relatively early for PWC, with the season not starting until mid-March in St. Petersburg. An extensive testing program should follow, as Callaway establishes its U.S. base and infrastructure.

“It’s definitely early for a Pirelli World Challenge program to be announced in December when we start racing in March. So that’s very good,” he said. “But, the team has a lot of work ahead of them in terms of getting infrastructure set up here in the United States, because a lot of their racing program has been in Europe. So, there will be a testing program, but they have to get the infrastructure in place first. But, we’ll be well prepared for St. Pete, I’m certain of it.

“Last year was the first year when I could sit back, kick my feet up, and know what I was doing next year. So, to be able to have everything done and be able to announce it this early on makes my life less stressful and now I can just focus on preparing myself and my team for next year.”